Well it’s not been my favourite couple of weeks, perhaps up there with the worst but I can now see light at the end of the tunnel.
We had all had nasty colds but no typical symptoms at all. The children being at school I have got used to lateral flow testing a couple of times a week just to be safe. A couple of weeks back my Sunday night test instantly came up with two lines. Naturally sheer panic rose from my feet to my head as my husband rushed to my parent’s house to steal another test to try again. Two lines instantly came up again…
The next morning all of us took the trip to the nearest mobile test site to get a pcr test to see if I was alone in corona corner or if all of us had it. The longest day and night in history started as I eagerly checked my phone every so often incase it came through at supersonic speed. At midnight my phone buzzed to confirm that both myself and my three-year-old were positive. George’s phone went soon after with the news he also had it but the other two children came back negative.
The worst part by far is the fear and anxiety over how bad it might get for any one of us. Wilf was battling a temperature but for the most part he was still his sassy self. An avid hater of medicine of any kind, I had to sneak calpol into his drinks then act like the captain of the rugby team on a night out demanding he downed it at various intervals in the day. Took a lot of strength not to go with “why was he born so beautiful…” if you know, you know.
I felt pretty lousy, wanted to crawl into bed with Netflix but had to keep the three children going until my husband finished working each day from home. I then pretty much handed them over and flopped somewhere to muster up some energy to see the day out. Google was my best friend but also my sworn enemy as every little symptom was checked and researched. My fate was sealed a few times as I read horror stories, desperately trying to read an account from someone who had felt like I did but not got any worse.
As the days rolled on the relief we might be nearing the end started to wash over me, only to be thwarted by two positive lateral flow tests for the other two children. Wilfred pained in his expression when he realised his saying of “coronavirus people only” to his elder brother could no longer work and sharing would have to resume.
My eldest remained well, he was still on antibiotics for a bout of tonsillitis and never coughed, sneezed, spluttered or moaned once. A huge relief as he is asthmatic. Sybbie on the other hand went down hill quite rapidly. Her first temperature and first time of being still and lethargic. A quick trip to A&E confirmed she was poorly but coping, much to our delight. As the week carried on she was more herself each day and as I write this I feel confident she is over the worst.
So the first to come down with it are finally free from house arrest but the other two have until Monday at midnight so we are back to home school for a few more days. I can’t explain how scary it’s been, how many tears I’ve secretly cried on the loo so I don’t panic any children, how many times I’ve said Anna Mathur’s mantra of “we will cross that bridge IF we get to it,” but we are finally nearing the finish line.
Over a year in I really hoped we were home safe and dry but it just shows it is still very much out there and really not a pleasant illness at all even in a mild form.
The Lincolnshire Mummy 